3 reasons why John Tortorella should be next head coach for the Devils
The New Jersey Devils are a circus in the NHL, as the team struggles to piece together back-to-back wins throughout the 2021-22 season. A head coaching change is for ‘Jersey as Lindy Ruff holds a 29-45-12 record in two disappointing years as the shepherd for this group.
On top of a porous record, Ruff simply can’t command this team the way he needs to. This is a Devils team that is the youngest in the NHL, with 29 players on the roster averaging to be 24.76 (per Elite Prospects). His teaching style is garnered towards an older, more experienced core that focuses on reassurance and boosting the confidence of veteran players. This is a team that needs discipline, tough love, and to be reminded of how the Devils play hockey.
John Tortorella is the perfect candidate to be the next head coach for the New Jersey Devils
Lindy Ruff is trying to make the Devils play like the Colorado Avalanche or the Washington Capitals in the sense that they’re trying to score 4-5 goals a game. The Devs have never been this type of team. They’ve always been a team that wins 3-2 and 2-1 games due to a gritty, defensive first playstyle that is best represented by the current style of the New York Islanders.
While John Tortorella is one of the most polarizing coaches in NHL history, he’s exactly what ‘Jersey needs. If you watch his interviews on ESPN+ during intermissions, Torts is just in a different timezone mentally. He’s there physically, but you can tell that he wants something bigger. He wants to be behind the bench because that’s what he was born to do.
Given the latest surge of coaching changes around the NHL, the Devils are next on the list after a fan threw a jersey on the ice at The Rock following their 5-3 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday night. Though this was a disgusting and cowardly act by a disloyal fan, it signifies just how brutal the Devils have been. For that reason, it’s time to clean the house and find a new voice to lead this group.
With all of this being said, here are three reasons why John Tortorella should be the next head coach for the Devils.
No. 3 – Discipline
Only certain teams in hockey can be led by an old-school coach who is regarded as a “yeller” and they tend to be younger, unpolished rosters in need of a good buffing. The Devils, as mentioned earlier, are the youngest team in the NHL and have just three players who are 30-years or older on the roster.
Due to having such a young team, they need a coach who can whip them into shape and hold them responsible for their mistakes. Having a Lindy Ruff who simply gives a slap on the wrist and pat on the back support is hindering the development of players like Nico Hischier, Jack Hughes, and others. The Devs need a coach that isn’t afraid to get in their face and nobody does it more often than John Tortorella.
There are two coaching styles that make or break teams: The Yeller, and The Supporter, and both serve their own unique purpose. There comes a point in an athlete’s career where they need someone to get in their can and give tough love.
When you’re young, having someone give you a pat on the shoulder after you just let up three odd-man rushes on the same shift will hinder your growth as a player (Lindey Ruff). Instead, they need a guy who isn’t there to be a friend, but a guy who is there to get the absolute most out of you by any means (John Tortorella).
The Supporter is best suited for teams that have an older core group of players, like the Vancouver Canucks or the Boston Bruins. Teams like these have players who have been there and done that and don’t need a guy screaming in their face over something they know already. The Veterans need a guy who understands who they are and can pump their tires and give them confidence. These two styles are polar opposites, but they have their own special purposes. Due to such a young core, the Devils need tough love in order to develop.
There is an incredible amount of potential for this franchise given the prospects that sit in the pipeline in addition to current stars on the team now. With discipline and a reminder of how hockey is played here through tough love, Torts can make this team, not only respected but feared once again.
No. 2 – Inside Job
There are few games that matter to the Devils than those against their rival across the Hudson, the New York Rangers. The hate for the “Strangers” is so strong, that even when the Devs host a team from the West, chants will still ring out from the rock blaring their disgust for their enemy.
In recent years, this hatred has intensified due to the lack of success against the Rangers. It seems that they tighten up every time they face them in the schedule, and not in a good way. This is where John Tortorella comes in.
While his coaching portfolio is nothing short of impressive, including his roles with the USA national team, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Columbus Blue Jackets, the biggest factor to this signing is his six-year tenure with the New York Rangers
Torts’ best point percentage in his coaching career came from behind the bench at MSG (0.583). After his time with the Tampa Bay Lightning in which he won a Stanley Cup, he returned to the team that gave him his first coaching opportunity in the NHL and ran with it.
From 2008-13, Tortorella would boast a 171-115-29 record accompanied by a Stanley Cup Finals appearance in the 2011-12 season against the L.A. Kings. All of this experience and knowledge can be brought to Newark to help dominate their disgusted rivals and assert the Devils back on top of the Rangers once more.
Far too long have Devils fans been forced to watch Chris Kreider score on their favorite team and not be able to do anything about it. It’s time to bring in a coach who not only knows how to get the most from his players, but who knows a dangerous amount of inside information about their biggest rival. It’s the perfect crime.
No. 1 – Toughness
The image above with Scott Stevens and Jay Pandolfo smoking a helpless Marian Hossa puts a smile on the face of every Devils fan. This image represents the kind of organization that the Devs were built to be. A gritty, hardnosed team from ‘Jersey. If you want to beat us, you’re going to have to earn it every single second.
When the franchise moved away from this style of play, the Devils became a bottom-tier NHL team. Newark New Jersey is by no means a flashy city. It’s a tough neighborhood that needs to be represented by the toughest team in the toughest sport and the only man out there that can make this happen is John Tortorella.
The Devils have always outhit and blocked more shots than their opponents every single night. However, ‘Jersey ranks 25th in hits/game (19.34) and ranks 23rd in blocked shots/game (13 flat). Devils’ hockey has never been about high-scoring and flashy games. They’ve always been a hard-nosed team that makes opposing teams miserable when they face a hard trap in the neutral zone followed by a gritty forecheck. This has been, is, and will be the true style of hockey in New Jersey.
John Tortorella lives and breathes this style of play. With the threat of losing hearing in your right ear, players for him follow the same mentality. Guys like Miles Wood, Nate Bastian, and Damon Severson are prime examples of the types of guys who play like a Devil.
Torts is one of the last true old-school coaches of the NHL. While many may not be partial to it, the Devils have historically been the definition of an old-school franchise. Just because something is new doesn’t necessarily make it better than the original. The Devs have tried to adopt small hockey and play with speed and finesse, but it simply does not work. Bringing in Tortorella will revive this franchise into becoming the powerhouse that it was in the early 2000s.